Rawai: the overlooked Bang Tao’s southern brother
Rawai area was always popular for long-term residents as the area to stay and enjoy their lives at the tropical dreamy island, Phuket.
It is far from the airport.
Far from the famous Bang Tao.
It is lined up with bars and the beach is parked with long tail boats and speedboats. Every evening you can see expats joining locals in the bars, and in the morning you can see flocks of tourists getting on boats and heading to the neighboring islands.
But Rawai is more than that, Rawai can be a chilled and quiet place to live happily with children and family. It depends on where you stay and where you look.
If you spend several hours at Rawai shore, even if it looks unpleasant at the first sight, you will notice local families coming in the late afternoon. They bring mats, lunch boxes, plates and utensils, games, and whatever they need to rest in the rich shade and sea breeze. Local kids do get into the water despite boats and their ropes crossing the sand here and there.
Expat families living in the well-known Title Rawai also learned to appreciate the closeness of the sea and sand. They come here to spend evenings and walk with their children along the shore, buying seafood at the local markets.
One seafood market - by the pier - is open till late and popular because cafes and restaurants will cook anything you buy at a low cost.
Rawai is easy to love. There are not so much of hotels and resorts, mostly here you will find local apartment buildings.
There are three International schools:
- ISP - International School of Phuket,
- Lighthouse (with Canadian program),
- Growing Minds Phuket.
There is one more school in the center of Rawai area, at Rawai Park.
They all are quite affordable if you compare them to other islands’ options.
There are two children's playgrounds:
- Rawai Park, with a swimming pool dedicated to younger kids,
- Youtopia Adventure Park has more of what could be interesting for older children.
There are several kindergartens:
- Kinderville: an amazing place for Russian-speaking children,
- Baan Kajonkiet Nursery Saiyuan,
- ABC International Nursery and Pre-School,
- Kindergarten “Skazka" - one more place for Russian-speaking children.
There are two temples that are very neat, attractive, and open to visitors. One is Wat Nai Harn - by the famous Nai Harn beach, and another one is Wat Sawang Arom, with a stunning white Buddha statue and the local school at the temple grounds. One more religious site that would be very fascinating to see is Phrom Thep monastery. It has an amazing viewing platform on the cliff above the water. It is a very picturesque and often overlooked location.
Locals and tourists often come to Rawai to see Promthep Cape. It has absolutely mind-blowing vistas over the ocean, and very comfortable and spacious grounds where you can rest and enjoys these views at no cost. There are cafes/restaurants, of course, but also plenty of venues with low and moderate prices. This place is not only popular as a leisure viewing spot, but also as a hike option to the tip of the cape.
When you stay in the Rawai area, you have at least two very good beaches to swim at:
- Nai Harn beach - the big, wide beach with safety guards on watch. You can swim here with your children and feel secure. It is lined up with very tall casuarina trees, the same as Rawai beach. The water is fine, the sand is white and soft.
- Yanui Beach - it is a smaller spot with two entrances and a rocky tip at the center. It is famous for snorkeling which is really good here. It has much less space for swimming than Nai Harn and rocks which can make swimming a more complicated and risky activity.
One more beach not far away is Ao Sane. It is kind of a private beach, so sometimes it is hard to secure a parking spot. It is only a short walk from Nai Harn beach, though, and might be worth it because of - again - amazing snorkeling opportunities!
You also will be able to find wild beaches if you wander off the beaten path here in Rawai.
The shopping opportunities are quite endless:
- Super Cheap at every corner
- Tesco Lotus Express
- Mini Big C
- Big Tesco Lotus next to
- Makro
- Villa Market by Chalong roundabout
- Local markets: Monday/Thursday market
- Pang Chang Market opens on Tuesday/Friday
- Papaya minimart with exported products and Russian foods by Nai Harn lake.
- Seafood Market by Rawai Pier
- One more seafood market in the morning time by We Cafe
Sports enthusiasts won’t feel disappointed either! Here are some activities you may explore:
- Aerobics at Nai Harn Lake
- Yoga at Nai Harn beach
- Running around Nai Harn lake and up to Promtep Cape
- Kayaking and stand-board paddling at Yanui beach
- Numerous MMA clubs
- Snorkeling at Yanui and Ao Sane beaches
- Beach volleyball at Nai Harn
As you can see, there is plenty that Rawai can offer. The only disadvantage is the amazingly long commuting time to the airport and the Northern part of Phuket.
Next time we will tell about several developments in the southern part of Phuket, so stay tuned for more articles published on our website. Thank you for reading and welcome to Rawai!
